Dream the Night Away
by Alaqua Slaughter
Summary: Tea was never social. When her father takes a job at Domino High teaching the 'Delinquents' dance, she decides to take lessons with him again there. Can these outcasts make it to the top in the international dance competition? AU
1. A Lonely Walk

…and then there were six…

* * *

Téa Gardner shifted in her seat, glancing around the dimly lit room. Many people were dancing, others were cheering and some were still eating. Dinner had ended a half-hour ago, but that didn't stop the elder people in the room from devouring the good food.

With a sigh, she got up, shook out her pink skirt and walked determinedly towards the door. She could hear some people whispering and automatically knew they were talking about her. She wasn't being paranoid; they always talked about her when they thought she wasn't listening. It was the same at every dance competition she went to, mainly because it was always the same people who competed.

Téa would enter a competition every once in a while, but mostly she would show up without a partner, preventing her from competing. After the competition was won there would be dancing, just plain, fun, non-competitive dancing and even then she would be without a partner. No one even bothered to spare her a word, just sent sympathetic glances her way.

It infuriated her.

She just didn't see the point of throwing a glance her way every now and then. If they felt sorry for her, then why didn't they bother to ask her to dance? It would be much easier for them to do so, after all, one more dance was what she wanted. A single, simple dance. It didn't have to be the waltz or foxtrot or anything, it could just be walking around, making it _look_ like they were dancing. Then she would be satisfied and she'd leave them all to dance the night away.

Téa sighed again as she kicked a pebble along the sidewalk, keeping her gaze focused on the small, shiny rock. People bustled around her, even though it was about eleven o'clock. No one spared her a glance as she walked through them, her ball gown swaying gently in the breeze. She stayed well away from the streetlights and neon signs, not wanting to embarrass herself.

Hugging her coat closer to herself, Téa pondered whether or not she should even go to the next school dance. For even there no one would dance with her. Probably because they somehow knew she couldn't dance like that. Sure, ballroom and ballet she could do, but the whole 'modern-day dancing' moves still eluded her, no matter how hard she tried.

Stopping under a streetlight, and ignoring the crowd around her, she gazed up at it, feeling lost. Not physically, because she knew Domino more than the back of her hand, but emotionally. Inside, her turmoil at not being accepted at school or among other dancers was tearing her apart. Slowly, but surely, soon she would be forced to move or risk depression or some other mental disorder. Not something she needed if she wanted to accomplish her dream.

Tearing her gaze away from the light she noticed someone watching her. Téa couldn't see them clearly, because they were across the street hidden in the shadows, but she could still feel their eyes on her. Feeling slightly unnerved, she put her head down and walked away as fast as she could without making it look like she was afraid. She didn't want to fight someone when she was wearing something as fancy and expensive as a ball gown.

With a breath of relief, she finally reached the residential part of town, where there were fewer people around. She allowed herself to slump with relief, taking in the crisp air. If it weren't for the hum of engines and people a street over, she could almost make herself believe that she was alone in a forest, one of her favorite fantasies.

In a forest, she wouldn't be judged by her peers or fellow dancers. She could take her hair down from the French Braid she kept wrapped around her head. She could dance all she wanted and not have to worry about messing up in front of rich people. The only company she would have was plants and animals, which she preferred to humans anyway. It would be bliss.

Snapping herself out of her thoughts, she walked slowly towards her own home, sixth on the right with the green shutters and roses growing over the picket fence. There her mother would be in the kitchen, baking cookies, cakes or other random pastries and deserts. Her father would be in his room, looking over maps and smoking a cigar and typing some "discovery" to pen pals in Europe or somewhere. Maybe he would even be dancing, for he was a former championship dancer.

If Téa wasn't at school or a dance, she would be in her room, studying or playing with her cat, Glitch. If she was in a bad mood, she would be in the dance room, which her father had added onto the house after he'd noticed his daughter's obsession with it. She would either be sitting on the floor, just listening to the music or dancing her way around the room. It was the only way she could forget her non-existent social life.

Téa opened the door to the house, the smell of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies hitting her. She breathed it in deeply. She loved the scent, it reminded her that there _were_ people who cared about her and noticed her and that reminder was what kept her from being just like all the other outcasts at school.

"I'm home." She shouted, closing the door and dropping her coat onto the floor. The Gardner's might be prompt about time , school and talent but when it came to manners being clean, they couldn't care less about what other's thought of them.

"How'd it go?" her mother asked, poking her head out of the kitchen, covered in flour.

"It was fine." Téa answered, going into the living and flipping on the TV, not bothering to change. It was a code they'd figured out without consulting each other.

If Téa headed directly to her room then she was to be left alone, unless they wanted her to blow up on them. If she went to the kitchen first, then it had been a fair day. If it was the living room, then she was to be spoken to later about whatever had happened.

It was a good communication system and everyone followed it. Even her father obeyed it when he wasn't itching to tell them something. Which, he seemed to want to do now, because he was pacing around the room, a strange light in his eyes.

"What's wrong with you?" Téa asked, putting down the remote and raising an eyebrow at her father.

"Dance!" he exclaimed, smiling happily. Téa blinked in confusion and gave her father a worried glance.

"Don't worry about him, daughter, he's just lost his mind a few hours ago." Mrs. Gardner said, coming out of the kitchen, having cleaned the flour and chocolate.

"I didn't!" Mr. Gardner protested. "I've got good news is all."

"Well, let's hear it, then." Mrs. Gardner said, waiting expectantly.

"I went to the public school today. The principal had apparently heard of my former dancing skills and asked me to take a job as dance teacher." He said, the light in his getting brighter.

"What'd you tell her?" Téa asked, knowing there was more to it.

"I told her no." he said, his smile getting bigger. "I don't have the time for teaching anymore. So, she offered that I just teach the kids in Saturday School, detention or ISS. And I accepted!"

Téa blinked again as her mother sighed and put a hand to her temple. "You really _have_ lost your mind."

"I haven't! This is the opportunity of a lifetime for those kids! They can get out their negative emotions and all that unintelligible stuff psychologists talk about." Mr. Gardner said. "But I don't feel comfortable teaching a class if my daughter isn't in it, so I'm enrolling you in Domino High and you're going to have to find a way to get into detention."

"Téa, honey, can you pack your father's essentials."

"Why?" she asked.

"Because I'm going to call Domino Mental Health Hospital and tell them they have a new arrival." Mrs. Gardner said, going back to the kitchen to get the phone.

"I'm not insane!" Mr. Gardner exclaimed, following her into the kitchen.

Téa couldn't help but smile. That was why she lover her parents, they were so random sometimes and they knew how to joke. She bit her lip at the thought of her father teaching dance again. The last pupil he'd had was herself, about five years before. She longed to be one of his students again and not of that stupid, stuffy private school she went to.

With a smile at her father's lightheartedness, she went back to watching TV.


	2. Dance Teacher, If You Can Call Him That

Hmm…four reviews…I honestly wasn't expecting that many…more like one or two. And OF COURSE Bakura's going to be in this! One of MY stories without him is like…uh…cake without eggs! Oh and yeah, I DID get my inspiration from that movie, but I'm doing everything within my power to keep it away from those tracks. And it _is_ Téa centric, but I'm going to switch POV's as I see fit. Like now!

* * *

Bakura drummed his fingers on the desk, feeling more bored than usual. Sure, he _was_ in ISS and boredom was expected, but while he was there he felt that it shouldn't be as lame as it normally was.

Sighing with irritation, he glanced to his left and smirked. Ryou, his cousin, had landed in ISS as well, for helping Bakura steal the snake in Biology. Granted, Ryou hadn't exactly known what he was doing and had been forced into it by Malik, but the teachers didn't know that, and had thus sentenced the three of them to ISS for the rest of the year.

Now, his only family member who actually gave a damn about what he was doing wasn't speaking to him. Bakura didn't mind, he'd been in these "mini-fights", as Malik called them, with Ryou before. It was only a matter of time before Ryou would forgive him and they'd go back to bickering over the more pointless things in life.

"Hey, misfits," Mr. Hintin, their supervisor, said, "You have a new 'teacher'. Treat him with respect and all that and you might be able to get out of here."

Bakura snorted. It was highly unlikely that they'd be let out of ISS to return to normal classes, none of the teachers could tolerate them for long before they were sent back here.

After Mr. Hintin left, Bakura studied the new supervisor curiously. There was no way anyone would volunteer for the job, so he suspected that the principal had gotten desperate and plucked someone off the street.

The man had graying, short brown hair and warm brown eyes that reminded Bakura uncomfortably of Ryou. He was wearing a brown suit and shiny black shoes, looking very professional. The man was somewhat short and Bakura was sure that Yugi Motou, the shortest boy in school, could look at him eye-to-eye.

The man wouldn't last a day.

The school "Delinquents", as everyone fondly referred to them as, had a reputation for sending out their supervisors screaming. Bakura himself had set fire to the library they had formally used as the ISS room and Malik had flooded the empty classroom they had used next. That was before they had been sentenced to be there for the rest of the year, because only those who had been there knew it was them and they weren't about to tell anyone anytime soon. Bakura had made sure of that. So, now they were using the security room, which they were planning on destroying as well.

"Why does everyone insist we need babysitters?" Ushio, a well known bully, muttered under his breath.

"First of all, I am not here to baby-sit you, I will not sit and watch as you all waste away before my eyes. I am going to be teaching a subject that the principal originally wanted me to do, but due to my schedule, I only have the time to deal with your lovely presences for some days and afternoons." The man said, having heard Ushio clearly. He sat down on a stool in the front of the room, watching them all.

"And what subject is that?" Duke Devlin, a foreign exchange student, asked.

"Dance." The man replied simply.

There was a stunned silence before Serenity Wheeler, the youngest in ISS, spoke. "Dance? Are you sure you're in the right place, sir?"

The man smiled. "Yes, I am sure, young lady."

"Who the hell are you?" Malik asked, staring at the man incredulously.

"I am Kurt Gardner." The man, now known as Kurt, answered. "And you are all, as of now, my new dance students."

Bakura stopped drumming his fingers and listened closely. He was sure that any moment now, he would hear a pin drop or a cricket chirp somewhere.

* * *

Short, short, short! I know! I know! Forgive me, I don't really have the time to put more up, but I will update on Wednesday if all goes according to plan and it will be WAY longer than this. I just wanted to give you an idea on who Téa's weird father is going to teach. Mind you, there ARE more people in ISS than previously mentioned and the others WILL make an appearance. oh, yeah, don't wonder about Serenity, you'll know why she's in there soon enough and it's an innocent enough reason. 


	3. Picking Partners

Obviously, things did NOT go according to plan, but I'll spare you the excuses and just get on with it.

* * *

"Now," Mr. Gardener said, standing up clapping his hands together. "What's a person without a partner? Everyone stand up and I will put you into pairs." 

Everyone remained seated, staring blankly at Mr. Gardener. Dance was the last thing they wanted to do and they were surprised at the nerve he had for even showing up and explaining all that. Instead of obeying him, they all turned back to what they had been doing before he had come.

Mr. Gardener frowned slightly but then rolled his eyes. He should have expected this, after all, even Téa had been a bit reluctant to learn dance. Smiling slightly, he sat back down on his stool and watched everyone.

"Hey, you're freaking me out." Duke said after a while, noticing that Mr. Gardener was staring at them, seemingly without blinking.

Instead of looking away or apologizing, Mr. Gardener merely smiled wider and continued to stare at them.

Everyone was now shifting in their seats, a little unnerved at having their every move watched by their supervisor. All of their previous ones had not paid any attention to them at all, which was why they got away with doing the things they did.

With a growl, Bakura got out of his seat and stormed to the front of the room, stopping in front of Mr. Gardener and crossing his arms.

"What will it take to get you to stop watching us?" he asked, annoyance evident in his voice.

"Not much, just do what I say for the first half of the day and I'll leave you to your merry existences for the other half." Mr. Gardener said.

Bakura arched an eyebrow. "Are you bargaining with us?"

"I believe so, though I would prefer it if you called it a 'deal', 'bargain' sounds like something you got at the dollar store."

Bakura sighed. "We only have to dance for half of the day?"

"Yes, unless you would like me extend that."

Bakura gave him a 'yeah right' look and turned around to face his fellow 'classmates'. "Get up here."

Without needing further encouragement, everyone got out of their seats and joined Bakura at the front of the room.

"Okay, now, just be patient while I assign you a partner. You will be partners for the rest of your time with me unless I say otherwise." Mr. Gardener said, getting off of his stool and circling the students, making mental note of all the attributes they had and all of the setbacks with their figures and personalities.

"Why can't we pick our partners?" Duke asked, twirling a strand of hair around his finger and glancing at Serenity.

"Because some of you have a few of the right physical properties for a certain dance and others have the perfect properties for a different one, though I am sure you will all be great in all dances by the end of the year. All in all, you all match each other by being different."

Malik blinked. "That made no sense."

Mr. Gardener sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, having forgotten that his explanations could only be understood by his family. "Think of yourselves as puzzle pieces. You all come from different pictures and will only match someone who comes from the same picture. Now, _all_ of you come from different pictures and will fit with anyone in this room, but I'm going to try and put you together with someone who has a slight resemblance to your own picture, so you don't look too ridiculous being with someone whom you're not compatible with."

"That…sorta made sense," said Duke, tilting his head to the side and thinking about it, "in a confusing way."

"To be blunt, you all probably know nothing about dancing and I'm going to put you with someone with whom you will have the most chance at succeeding. After you all know the basics, I'm going to switch your partners." Mr. Gardener said, finally thinking of something they all could understand. "Before we get started, I would like everyone to introduce themselves. We'll make it into a game. I will pick someone first and then they'll pick someone and so on until we're done, let's start with you." He said, pointing at Ryou.

"Oh, um, I'm Ryou Bakura." Ryou answered, slightly confused at what was going on because Mr. Gardener talked too fast.

"Nice to meet you Ryou, now pick someone else to introduce themselves."

Ryou pointed at someone randomly.

"Malik Ishtar." Malik said, then pointed.

"Ushio. That's all you're getting." Ushio said, pointing lazily.

"Bonez." Said a kid with a face like a skull as he pointed randomly.

"Bakura." Bakura said shortly, pointing.

"Serenity Wheeler." Serenity said. She looked indecisive for a moment before she did what the others had done and chose someone randomly.

"Duke Devlin." Duke said, lazily lifting his arm and pointing.

"Tristan Taylor." Said a tall boy with brown hair and eyes.

"Well, that's everyone and you all know who I am so I won't waste time by introducing myself again. Okay, now. Ryou, Malik, you're a pair. Ushio, Bonez, you're a pair. Bakura, Serenity, you're a pair and Duke and Tristan, you're a pair."

"WHAT?" Everyone shouted in unison.

"Well, there's a shortage of girls in here, so you can't be with a member of the opposite sex, now can you? Don't worry, I will be switching Serenity around frequently so you all don't feel awkward about this." Mr. Gardener said patiently.

"I'm not dancing with Ryou." Malik said stubbornly.

"Same here. I refuse to dance with him." Duke said, glancing at Tristan with annoyance. "And I thought you said you were going to match us up with 'a puzzle piece with roughly the same picture' or something like that."

"I changed my mind. Dancing with someone you hardly know will increase trust and all that junk." Mr. Gardener said, sighing.

"But I _know_ Malik." Ryou protested.

"You do?" Mr. Gardener asked.

"Yes, he does. And I will not allow my cousin to dance with my partner in crime." Bakura said, glaring at the now impatient supervisor.

"Never mind, Mr. Gardener, I would be happy to dance with Malik." Ryou said quickly, glaring at Bakura. Malik raised his eyebrows and glanced at the feuding cousins then shook his head, exasperated.

"Well, there's one problem solved, Mr. Gardener." Said Tristan, "And I agree with Duke, I can't dance with him. It'd be…awkward."

"Alright! Alright. Do any of you have a sister or something?"

"I do." Malik said, giving Mr. Gardener a confused look. "Why?"

"Would you or her mind if she came and partnered with one of you?"

Malik frowned for a moment before pulling out his cell phone. "I don't really like the idea, but I'll call and see what she says."

As Malik went to the back of the room to call, Mr. Gardener looked back at his pupils. "Now, there's one more female you bunch of social-worry-warts. I myself have a daughter that is your age but she is already considered a pro. Asking her to come would be an insult. But, because I only took this job because I intended for her to be in it, she will come and partner with one of you."

Ryou blinked. "You wanted your daughter to get into detention?"

"Yes, but my wife wouldn't allow it." Mr. Gardener said, suddenly looking a bit bitter.

"She said she would." Malik said, coming back to the group. "But there are still two groups without a female and one of us without a partner."

"He said he had a daughter that's coming. So that just makes two groups of men." Duke said.

Mr. Gardener sighed again. "We will just have to interchange the groups. Switch off, like I said in the beginning." He glanced at the clock and was surprised that it was already ten thirty. Half of the school day was over. "Now, like I promised, you all have the rest of the day to do what you want." With that said, he went and sat behind the security desk, rubbing his temples as the others just shrugged and went back to their own desks. He should have known that teaching dance again was going to be harder than he thought.

"Mr. Gardener? What if we don't want to learn dance?" Tristan asked, leaning against the monitor that showed the campus, as security never turned it off.

"Yeah, that would be a whole hour wasted." Duke said as he flipped through a magazine.

"Yeah." Everyone else agreed.

Mr. Gardener blinked. He hadn't thought of what to do in case they protested _this_ much. He was about to tell them that he was just going to force them to do it when a brilliant idea hit him. He was sure Téa would help him and he allowed a grin to slowly grow over his face.

"Then I'll just have to give you a reason to do it."

* * *

longer than i thought it would be. about the pairings, i don't think i will have any in this one. and marik...i don't know. i hadn't originally planned for him to be in this, though now that you mention it...i think i _will_ have him here, but he won't make an appearance until the last couple of chapters. 


	4. A Couple of Phone Calls

"Téa!" Mr. Gardener shouted, rushing into his house and closing the door with a loud bang. He winced at the sound but chose to ignore it and ran up the stairs, not bothering to take off his coat. "Téa!"

Téa looked up from the book she'd been reading, laying it across her stomach and frowning at her father as he rushed into her room. He looked excited, his eyes glinting unnaturally as he grinned at her.

"You kept in touch with Mai and Kaiba, didn't you?" He asked, rubbing his hands together and smiling widely.

Téa nodded slowly, wondering where he was going with it. "I talked to Mai two days ago and Kaiba last week. Why?"

"Because Mai is an exceptionally beautiful woman and Kaiba is a brilliant dancer."

Téa blinked. "Oh..."

"No offense to you, honey, but Mai is older and more experienced in making men drool and all Kaiba has to do is act normal and women are swooning around him." Mr. Gardener said, smiling happily. "Could you call them tonight and ask them if they will help me with my class?"

Téa sighed and sat up, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed and reaching for her phone. "I'll call them now," she said, dialing Kaiba's number.

"Great! Well, see you at dinner!" Mr. Gardener waved and walked back out, happily humming to himself.

Téa smiled and shook her head, listening as the phone rang on the other end. A minute later an annoyed voice answered.

"Talk, and talk fast."

"Hello to you too, Kaiba." Téa said, rolling her eyes. He was always annoyed for some reason.

"Téa? What do you want?"

"Can't I call just to talk to an old friend?"

"Not when that 'old friend' is the reason for your plummet in the dancing community."

Téa winced, that particular wound hadn't fully healed yet. "Do you have to bring that up every time I talk to you? And you asked why I hardly ever call."

"Exactly. You hardly ever call. So, what is it you want from me?"

She sighed, rubbing her temples. Sometimes, talking to him gave her a headache. "My father wants to know if you can help him out with his new dance class."

There was silence on the other end for a minute before Kaiba spoke again. "Are you in it?"

Téa considered her answer carefully. She knew him well enough to know that he could go either way with any answer she had. He would most likely do it if she wasn't there, but then he said once that he felt like he owed her. Deciding to play it safe she said, "Not yet."

Kaiba sighed on the other end. "I'll do it, and then we can consider ourselves even. What does he need me to do?"

She gave a mental cry of victory. "Demonstrate, I suppose."

"You suppose?"

"I don't know what he has planned. He didn't tell me."

"You should have asked."

"I realize that now. When can you come?"

There was the sound of a drawer opening and shuffling papers before Kaiba answered. "I'm not free until next Tuesday."

"That's a week away!"

"I know."

Téa sighed. "It'll have to do, I guess. I'll see you then."

"You'd better be there." A click signified that he'd hung up.

Staring at the phone incredulously, she started to dial Mai's number. As she waited for her friend to pick up, she fumed over Kaiba's command. _Who does he think he is? Ordering me around after what he did._

She knew that in most people's eyes, what he did wasn't actually that bad, but it had been a nightmare for her. All the money they'd had to pay! Not to mention her sprained ankle. And the sneers from the winning couple, along with all the whispers that had followed her around afterwards. It was strange that he'd reduced himself to spreading rumors…unless it hadn't been started by him.

She was torn out of her thoughts when a breathless voice answered. "Mai speaking."

"Hey, Mai!" Téa said cheerfully, thankful for the distraction the other brought.

"Téa? How're you doin', hon'? Not being bothered by any of the lesser beings we call males, are you?" Mai said good-humoredly.

"With the minor exception of my father and a blue-eyed 'bot, no."

"That's almost good to hear. Kaiba bothering you again?"

"A little."

"You two need to drop your feud and get your aggression for each other out in a more healthy way."

Téa rolled her eyes. "Please tell me you're not suggesting what I think you are."

"I might be. After all, I heard he was great, from a very reliable source."

"And who would that be?"

"His secretary."

Téa couldn't help but laugh. "You forced Joey to say that, didn't you?"

"Not my fault he's got anger issues. I'm just trying to help out a little. I was actually surprised when I saw him answering the phone. He looked like the real deal. A family-business man type. Can't believe Kaiba hired him, they hate each other more than you and that one guy."

"Atemu?"

"That's the one. Anyway, why'd you call?"

Téa sighed. Talking to Mai always had her head spinning; she changed topics and spoke faster than anyone she knew. "My father wants you to help him out with his new class."

"Dance?" Mai asked, her voice sounding excited.

"What else? Anyway, I think he wants you and Kaiba to demonstrate or something."

"Why doesn't he want you to do it?"

"Because you're more experienced in making men drool."

Mai laughed. "So, when's the 'bot free to do it?"

"Tuesday."

"A week, hm? I'm in Europe right now but I can come back by then."

"Thanks Mai."

"Anything for my little sister. I've got to go now, hon', so I'll see you there!"

"Yeah, bye." Téa waited for the dial tone before hanging up. Stretching, she got up and headed downstairs.

"Dad?" She asked, poking her head around the corner into her fathers study.

"What'd they say?" he asked, not looking up from whatever he was studying on his desk.

"Next Tuesday." she answered, going in and looking around before starting to search the shelves of her father's bookcase.

"That'll work. I can't teach tomorrow or Thursday anyway, so I can get basics out of the way on Friday and Saturday for those who'll be there. Hopefully, they won't forget by the time Monday comes around." He set down the letter he'd been looking at and gave his daughter a slight frown, before his gaze softened. "It's on the top shelf, to the very right."

Téa nodded and looked where her father had indicated, immediately spotting the glass rose and carefully bringing it down. Mr. Gardener watched her, annoyance on his face.

"I'll never understand why _that_ of all things makes you feel better. It's from _him_, after all." He said, giving the rose a disapproving look.

Téa smiled and gently held it around the stem, enjoying how the light reflected the colors off it, sending blue and purple across the walls. "It was before Kaiba."

"I know. It just gets on my nerves whenever I look at it. The way he turned his back on you like that, I swear I'll never forgive him for it!" Mr. Gardener threw his arms in the air, expressing how annoyed he was.

"It doesn't matter now." Téa said, looking at the rose sadly. "It's all over and done with."

Mr. Gardener sighed. "I know, I know. I just can't help hating him for how he treated you after that. I can barely stand Kaiba now as well! But he helped a bit, so it's alright."

Téa just nodded and went back out of the study, keeping a gentle grip on the rose, looking at it fondly. Besides being given to her by the man she no longer acknowledged, it was the greatest memory she had. Its ability to make her feel better confused her as much as it did her father, but that didn't matter anymore. It was hers and she enjoyed that little fact.

"Téa?"

She turned around and found her mother standing in the doorway to the kitchen, looking uncomfortable. "Yeah?

"Don't feel you have to go to the demonstration. Kaiba'll understand you don't want to see him."

Téa considered it for a moment. She knew her mother was right but she couldn't bare the thought of appearing weak in Kaiba's eyes. "I know, but it's been a year since I last saw him or even had a decent conversation with him…maybe he's changed."

Her mother nodded. "I just hope this little dance class of your fathers is smart…I have a feeling a few things are going to change because of it. I just hope it's for the better." Mrs. Gardener said, going back into the kitchen to finish dinner.

* * *

sorry for not updating in so long! family problems came up and i wasn't really in the writing mood. but it's here now and i hope you enjoy it! and sorry if it's littered with grammaticl errors, i didn't read through it like i normally would because i wanted to get it out, but i'll fix any if i find some later.


	5. Round One: Mr Gardner

Malik sighed with boredom, leaning back in his chair.

Mr. Gardner was at the front of the room, pacing back and forth, muttering under his breath, completely ignoring the students he was supposed to be teaching. Not that they minded, they were used to people forgetting about them.

Duke nudged him and pointed at Tristan, who had fallen asleep. Smirking, Malik pulled out the straw of his cup that he'd gotten when he'd gone to lunch. Rolling a piece of paper between his tongue, he pushed it into the straw and blew.

It hit Tristan's nose, causing him to slightly twitch, but otherwise remain asleep.

Duke and Malik snorted with laughter, trying not to draw their supervisor's attention. Through his laughter, Malik glanced at the others and found that were either frowning or smirking their way. While he grinned at them, Duke grabbed the straw from Malik and quickly blew another spit ball, which hit Tristan's cheek.

"Finally!" Mr. Gardner suddenly shouted as someone banged on the door, making most of them jump and causing Tristan to wake up. He rushed to the door and flung it open.

Malik blinked and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. A girl walked in, with short brown hair and wide blue eyes. She was wearing a blue skirt and dress jacket, a white shirt underneath; the uniform of a rival school, not to mention a rich one. In her right hand was simple stereo.

"Hey!" Tristan shouted, realizing that he had a couple of spit balls on his face, "what the hell?" he growled, wiping them off.

Duke sniggered. "Sorry, man, but that's what you get for falling asleep on us."

Tristan just shot him an annoyed and disgruntled look, laying his head back down on the desk. "Screw you, Devlin," he muttered sleepily.

"I don't really roll that way," Duke said carelessly, twirling a strand of hair around his finger with boredom, "sorry to disappoint you, _Tristan_."

"Whatever, Devlin," Tristan said, no longer listening to the green-eyed boy.

Malik just rolled his eyes and chose to stare at the ceiling, wondering what the hell was up with Mr. Gardner. He was bouncing on the balls of his feet, clapping his hands together and looking excited while that girl plugged in the stereo and inserted a CD. For some reason, it made him nervous.

"GAH!" Tristan shot back up, covering his ears as classical music was suddenly blasting throughout the room. He wasn't the only one, everyone else was either cringing or crying out with surprise and disgust. The only one's who didn't seem to mind it were Ryou and Serenity.

The brunette girl merely blinked and turned it down slightly.

"What the_ hell_?" Tristan said again, glaring at her. His eyes suddenly widened as he finally took a look at her, openly gaping. "_Téa_?"

She stared at him for a moment before she, too, gasped in recognition. Before she could say anything, the door once again burst open.

A stunning blonde woman swept into the room, twirling around, looking dangerously close to falling. She stopped in the center of the room, her eyes trained on one of the windows set in the ceiling, her violet eyes half-lidded with boredom and sensuality. All the males in the room stopped what they were doing to stare at her, taking in her shapely form, their view enhanced by her short purple dress.

A second later, a boy who seemed to be around their own age came in, not as dramatically as the woman but still managing to look enticing. He was wearing a simple outfit, slacks and a white button up shirt. Something flashed across his eyes when he saw the woman, probably lust or something akin to it, Malik figured.

The tall brunette made his way slowly towards her, almost bored. When he finally reached her, something seemed to intensify and this time Malik got the feeling it wasn't lust. No, it felt more like some bottled up emotion that had been screaming for release and was granted just that.

The boy grabbed hold of her and she seemed to hesitate for a only a moment, before allowing him to take the lead and twirl her around the room. They danced fast, with no little amount of energy. She seemed to know what he was going to do before he'd done it and complied with his every action. The trust she put in him was astounding.

He held her at the waist for a moment, just leading her to another part of the room before switching and twirling her into a different stance, so that they held hands. It went on like that for the entire song, and everyone was fixated on how well they seemed to cooperate. As if they'd done it a million times.

When the song slowed, they also slowed and when it came to stop, they also stopped, with him towering over her, his eyes closed, as if he were just savoring the moment. She was breathing heavily was looking anywhere but at him.

"Well done!" Mr. Gardner broke the silence, stepping forward and clapping. "Now I know what I taught you didn't go to waste."

The two dancers immediately pulled apart, and stepped away from each other. They shot the girl by the stereo a glance, the boy's face almost smug.

"Everyone, this is Seto Kaiba, I'm sure you've heard of him," Mr. Gardner said, gesturing at the boy, who just fixed a scowl on, "and this is Mai Valentine." the woman nodded at them.

"Where the hell did they learn to do that?" Duke asked, giving the two a skeptical look.

"From me," Mr. Gardner answered proudly. "They were my students three years ago, the best."

Malik sighed and looked away. Though he hated to admit it, Mr. Gardner's plan had worked on them. The fluid movements of the two standing in front of the room had ignited something in him, almost making him wish he could be as smooth and coordinated. As _entrancing_.

Duke allowed his chair to go back on all four legs and frowned, "The best? Then we won't learn how to be that good?"

Mr. Gardner shook his head and Malik guessed he would tell them they were hopeless, but that they would be at least half decent. "No, you _will_ be that good one day. You just have to put some effort into it."

Malik blinked and shot him a glance, before he looked at Bakura. The white-haired teen was staring at the ceiling, his hands behind his head. He appeared to not have watched the dance at all.

"What do you think?" Malik asked him, curious.

Bakura sighed and ran a hand through his hair, giving Malik a bored look. "I think he's won this round, Malik."

Mr. Gardner's grin couldn't get any wider.

* * *

_well, it's certainly been a while since this fic has seen the light of day. but, hell, it's back! please point out any mistake i might have made, i didn't really go over the end of it all that well._

-_Slaughter_


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